The effects of music listening on emerging adulthood in dealing with grief of losing parents during the covid-19 pandemic

Abstract

Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic is a difficult situation to face, especially at the emerging adulthood development stage. The death factor during the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rise and increases daily cases in Indonesia. Grief is one of the responses felt by individuals in the emerging adulthood development stage who experienced the loss of someone close to them during the COVID-19 pandemic. Music is one of the coping techniques that individuals can use throughout the time of grief during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research aims to determine the role of music in emerging adulthood in alleviating grief, and aims to obtain an overview of the condition in question after being faced with grief. Method: This research was conducted using qualitative methods with semi-structured interviews. The participant criteria used in this study were individuals aged 18 to 25 years, who had experienced the death of a parent during the COVID-19 pandemic, and listened to music when they lost a loved one. The number of participants in this research was three female participants with convenience sampling as the sampling technique used. The interview was conducted in three sessions and each interview session lasted 60 to 90 minutes. The interview guide used included questions to dig deeper into participants' feelings and experiences during the COVID19 pandemic, music listening activities, and participants' experiences of grief. The integrity of the research methodology was carried out using member checking. The analysis technique for this research uses thematic analysis. Result: The results of this research shows that the grief experienced by emerging adults is faced and responded into different ways. The music listened to by emerging adults has goals and benefits as a coping strategy for the three participants. Conclusion: The experience of grief experienced by emerging adulthood can also be overcome with support from the closest ones or significant others.